Statistics show that in 2019, 13.52 million new jobs were added to cities and towns in China, which has remained above 13 million for seven consecutive years. Due to various factors such as rising labor costs and the application of labor-saving technologies, the total supply of jobs cannot balance the total demand for jobs, and the sudden epidemic impact has increased the risk challenges at home and abroad. Although the employment situation in China has remained generally stable, The contradiction between the supply and demand of the total number of jobs has become prominent, and the pressure to stabilize employment has increased. According to data released by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, from January to March this year, 2.29 million new jobs were created in cities and towns across the country, a decrease of 950,000 from the same period last year.
To solve the employment problem and let the people live and work in peace, it is necessary to implement the employment priority policy in a down-to-earth manner and give full play to the main role of enterprises, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, in stabilizing employment. Enterprises are the most important platform for creating wealth and the most important carrier for providing jobs. Affected by the new Coronary Pneumonia epidemic, some enterprises have experienced temporary operational difficulties and reduced demand for employment. To stabilize employment and ensure employment, we must first help enterprises overcome difficulties, make enterprises develop with confidence and motivation, and provide more jobs in the continuous development and growth. In recent years, from the central government to local governments, many policy measures have been issued to support the development of enterprises, especially small, medium and micro enterprises, and encourage enterprises to absorb labor. For example, Beijing will refund 50% of the unemployment insurance premiums paid in the previous year to insured companies that did not lay off staff or reduce them, and 100% to small and medium-sized enterprises. According to reports, from February to March, the social security assistance enterprise "exempted from mitigation" action has reduced and exempted social insurance premiums of 232.9 billion yuan and deferred payment of 28.6 billion yuan, which has played a positive role in easing the funding pressure of enterprises and helping enterprises resume production as soon as possible. As of the end of March, all provinces have issued their own reduction and exemption measures, all of which are implemented in accordance with the top-level policy, and all reduction and exemption policies are fully implemented. Qualified enterprises have enjoyed the benefits of periodic reduction and exemption policies.
A series of policies and measures have effectively boosted the development of the company's "morale" and made the company more confident in recruiting talents. Data show that in February, the unemployment rate in the national survey of cities and towns was 6.2%, and that in 31 major cities was 5.7%. In March, the unemployment rate in the national urban survey was 5.9%, a decrease of 0.3 percentage points from February. It can be seen that the effect of stabilizing enterprises and securing jobs is obvious, and the unemployment rate is showing a downward trend. In addition, from the industry point of view, the service industry has become the main force to absorb labor, especially the absorption capacity of labor-intensive service industries such as wholesale and retail, accommodation and catering, tourism and leisure, and health care. Therefore, to give play to the main role of enterprises in stabilizing employment, we must also focus on encouraging, supporting and guiding the development of labor-intensive service companies, helping companies create more jobs, solving the contradiction between labor supply and demand, and making greater contributions to stabilizing employment. (Economic Daily-China Economic Net columnist Qiao Ruiqing)